


Bring Him Home

by scurvaliciousbay



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Adamant, Canon Divergence, Combat, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2018-12-15
Packaged: 2019-09-19 13:52:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17002884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scurvaliciousbay/pseuds/scurvaliciousbay
Summary: Elodie Amell is not a mage with one fucks with, not even a giant demon that threatens all of Thedas. For all those who left Alistair in the Fade. She will bring him home.





	Bring Him Home

She stands over the remains of Adamant Fortress, laid waste by the Inquisition’s forces. It is a mess of black rubble and bad memories. Corrupted magic lingers, pooling around the bodies and bones that still lay strewn across the landscape. They’re all unclaimed, almost all are Wardens, denied the right to die fighting darkspawn.

Elodie does not pity them. They chose their fates, they chose to ally themselves wrongly, to use blood magic to bind themselves to demons of all things. She wonders when the wardens went astray. She recalls Avernus and Sophia and thinks that perhaps this is the true face of her organization. Power through any means to destroy evil. But she cannot help but feel these courses of actions are wrong. She spared Avernus, it seemed like the right thing to do considering the sentiment of his bond to the order. But Elodie was young, still fresh out of the Circle, limping after the loss of so many at Ostagar….

Looking at the remains of the wardens makes her realize she would not spare many of them. She would not have spared Clarel or many of the mages. Those who were slated for sacrifice, of course, but those who were complicit or active in this whole ordeal…they have earned these graves.

But there is one who has not earned any of this.

The letter still burns in her heart. Leliana’s words scrawled across a page, offered kindness in an attempt to soften the blow. But the news -

_It brings me the greatest sorrow to write this. Alistair chose to remain in the Fade to buy the Inquisitor and Hawke time to escape. He sacrificed himself for the greater good - for the rest of the wardens._

She clenches her fist and allows her tears to fall. It isn’t right that he had to pay for the crimes of these wardens. He would never in a thousand years ever condone such things. Dammit, Alistair is good! Out of everything she has seen, of all the things that ought to have been good turned wrong or bad, he was always good.

She wipes at her face, internally cursing the Maker. How could He allow such a thing to happen? How could he allow such a genuinely good man die because of the actions of evil idiots? Either He doesn’t exist or is the worst demon of them all.

Elodie swallows and allows her anger to flow through her, to reach into the pit of her being. It stirs within her power, heightens it to a pique. Her fists unclench as she exhales, feeling the magic of the place. There is so much that lingers here. The Veil is thin, and she can use it all.

Elodie Amell is the Hero of Ferelden, and she has lost enough good in her life.

The lyrium she drank earlier deepens her power reserves and she uses all of it now, channeling it into an explosive burst.

“I rend the Veil, sunder it open, show me my love and deliver him thus,” she chants, starting out softly. Her voice grows as the concentration of her power grows, reaching past the Veil and into the Fade. She reaches for the spirits that cling to this place - spirits of horror and betrayal and rage. They all flock to her, twisting around her magic, trying to burrow into her. She sucks at their energy, funneling it into her own.

It is ironic how she always told her teachers that her spirit healing training would prove her helpful, not dangerous. She does not feel helpful now, but exceptionally dangerous. She has learned to avoid possession, only to harness their energy to empower her spells. Now, she practically drains them dry of their magic as she forces her magic against the Veil. As thin as it is, it still resists her. She pushes harder, barely noticing the dying spirits around her.

“I REND THE VEIL, SUNDER IT OPEN, SHOW ME MY LOVE AND DELIVER HIM THUS!” She shouts, funneling in more power, siphoning more from the spirits. They shatter like glass around her as she screams.

The Veil splits open wide, revealing a hideous spider-like monster. It turns its arrayed gaze to her with a shriek. It moves from over its prone prey - Alistair.

Elodie pants, exhaustion imminent, but she’s not done yet. She brought two staves with her and she uses one to keep the opening to the Fade propped open while she grasps the other and steps into the Fade.

The raw energy slams into her, more than simply rejuvenating her but awakening her to power she has never known. She grasps that power, focuses it into her staff, and directs it to the giant demon arachnid.

It screams at her, lurching forward even as she blasts it with energy.

“You think to take him from me?!” She shouts, “I have lost enough!” She whips around, spiraling her magic to burrow deep into the carapace.

It screeches in pain, lunging itself toward her in a frenzy. Blood oozes from its wounds and she pummels more magic into those wounds, deepening them, widening until it has lost so much of its disgusting form that it struggles to move.

Her lungs feel like they are aflame with strain, her magic feels raw and nearly depleted. She has to get to Alistiar, she has to -

The demon swipes at her and sends her flying. She slams against a rock, the air forced from her lungs. Her vision spins and for a moment she thinks she will lose it all - her love, her life.

But she has more tricks up her sleeve than the demon knows, and it is no longer towering over Alistair.

Elodie lifts her hand and directs her magic to a familiar place within her. It is warm and bright, and she directs to Alistair. A beam of brilliant light shoots from her hand and washes over him.

The demon lurches toward her, closer and closer. Elodie forces the healing to take hold over Alistair, willing him to be better. Please live, just live, the world is not right without you in it. I love you, I can’t lose you too.

His head moves and she could cry. She hears his groan just as the beam of light flickers then disappears.

“Alistair,” she whispers, but it echoes and she can tell he hears it because when he raises himself up into a kneeling position, he looks over to her. His eyes widen with recognition that quickly turns to horror.

“Ellie.”

The demon roars, pulling her attention to it. Elodie stumbles to her feet, grasping her staff to shroud herself in a barrier.

“Time to die, demon,” she murmurs. But Alistair manages to beat her to the punch by rushing ahead with his sword, carving into it with a wild cry.

“You can’t have her!” He shouts, making her smile. Even after being apart, their hearts still beat the same.

Elodie pulls the barrier into herself as the demon turns to face Alistair. She shoots the power out and back into it, sinking deep into the demon until it collapses, no longer able to carry itself. Alistair drives his sword into it, hacking it to pieces until it gives a last dying shudder and turns to black dissolving goo.

Dead.

Alistair stumbles back, his armor in tatters, dried blood all over his body. He’s alive. Elodie reaches her hand out, too tired to run. He seems more than willing to cross the distance, jumping over the puddle of goo before running to her. She opens her arms just in time to be pulled into his embrace. He spins her around and she feels the world get better bit by bit.

“I’ve missed you,” she whispers.

“How did get here? Nevermind, I probably don’t want to know, all that matters is that you’re here. Always coming to my rescue.” He nuzzles her neck into her hair and she sighs.

“As wonderful as it is to see you, we don’t have much time. We need to get through the opening,” she says. Alistair sighs but nods, letting her down. He takes her hand and together they leave the Fade through the opening.

When they land in the waking world, once more surrounded by Adamant’s rumble, Alistair looks pained. It strikes her as it often does how much older they are now. No longer at they the barely twenty-year-olds who had little understanding of their places in the world. So much has changed, so much more will change.

There is one thing that she knows will not change, though, and it is her love for him and his for her. Elodie squeezes Alistair’s hand.

“I love you,” she says.

“I love you too,” he replies. Elodie smiles then sways.

“That’s great because I think I need you to carry me back to camp.” Just like that, her knees give out. He’s thankfully quick, sweeping her up into his arms.

“Tell me the way, my dear.” She rests her head against his chest, relaxing for the first time in weeks.

If the Maker deems to take Alistair away from her, Elodie thinks, He’s going to have to go through her first.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! This actually started out as a practice piece for me, but I'm pretty proud of it!


End file.
